Hello, after spending the past year and the next foreseeable year having to work with small valves that sort of work with current CubeSat propulsion systems. I have decided that I will dip my toes into the water of IRAD and develop my own valve that is intended to keep the used volume as low as possible while improving (decreasing) the flow restriction that is seen in nearly all valves that are small enough to fit into CubeSat propulsion systems.
Nothing against the current valves on the market, since like I said they work. The issue is that they were never initially intended to be used on propulsion systems. This means that if you want to produce any decent amount of thrust or ISP then you have to deal with a large flow restriction, and this issue becomes even harder when ensuring that all wetted materials work with highly corrosive liquids.
So my plan is to produce a valve with the intention that it is to be used in propulsion systems that can easily fit in CubeSats that are 12U and larger, and to design the valve for all currently used propellants. I plan to have a working prototype by the end of 2021.
8/19/2021 Update:
Ground test parts have been ordered and should arrive by the end of September. I am really excited to begin working on this with my own hands. See the CAD rendering and more information here.
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